Help! My Child Doesn’t Qualify for Speech Therapy in School
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What Can I Do To Help My Child?
It can be one of the most frustrating things that a parent can face – believing that his or her child needs help and not knowing how to provide it. If your child is struggling with speech or communication issues but the school has said he or she doesn’t qualify for speech therapy at school, there are still several options you can use to help your child. Other options within the school, private SLPs, at-home activities, and other professional services can all be of help to your child’s communication development.
Beyond Speech Therapy in School
If your child’s school has decided that they can’t offer your child speech therapy services, there might be another option for your child that will help to build those communication skills. The RTI, or Response To Intervention, process involves tracking students in the classroom and targeting those who appear to be struggling. For instance, if your child is struggling with academics because the information comes to quickly for him to retain, the RTI professional can work with your child’s teacher to provide that information in a new way. Check with your child’s school to see if they use the RTI process to improve their classrooms and see if your child can be monitored with such a program.
Image Courtesy of www.chariho.k12.ri.us
Private SLPs – When school based speech therapy isn’t an option it might be best to seek the advice and services of a private Speech-Language Pathologist. While these options might be more of a financial commitment, their services are often tailored to your child and make the most of time commitments. You can also request that your child’s SLP give you strategies to use in home and in school so that your efforts to help your child’s communication improve can be multiplied. Depending on the nature of the speech disorder, your child might benefit from even minimal visits in order to gain the tools needed to improve speech.
Tools to Improve Speech in the Home – While speech therapy in schools can have wonderful benefits for children, there are also very effective and affordable strategies and tools you can use in your own home to help your child.
- Speech Buddies – The tools we provide can help children correct their tongue positions and improve their articulation abilities. Developed by a team of experts from MIT and Columbia Universities, these tools can help your child tackle those common problem sounds of /r/, /s/, /l/, /ch/, and /sh/. You can use these in the comfort of your home, and many SLPs use them with their patients, too. We also offer online programs that make the most out of the tools for your child.
- Technology – No matter how old your child is or in what area he or she struggles with communication, there seems to be an app for that. Check out some of our favorite app choices that you can use with your child to improve speech and communication skills.
- Apps for those with apraxia
- Apps to improve articulation
- Apps for elementary school children
- Literature Activities – At the heart of many communication struggles for children is literature. Reading is such an integral part of education that it is the undercurrent for many children’s successes or challenges. Use some of these reading activities to help your child build better communication strategies.
Even though it can be extremely frustrating to want your child to receive speech therapy in school and be told that he or she doesn’t qualify, that doesn’t have to mean it is the end of the road of possibilities. Keep working with your child, finding other resources and tools, to provide as many opportunities for improved communication skills outside of the classroom. Eventually this can help translate into better performances and experiences inside the classroom.
